Duluth weather in January

In January, Duluth sees average daytime highs of 19°F and overnight lows near 8°F, with 1.0 in of precipitation across 6.3 wet days and about 8.8 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 12th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 19°F through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 23% of the time in January, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 24 min at the start of January to 9 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, January is Duluth's 10th-clearest and 5th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Duluth's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 19°; 12th warmest
Overnight low: 8°; 1st coldest
Precipitation: 1.0 in; 6.3 wet days
Daylight: 8 h 42 min; 7:56 AM – 4:40 PM
Cloud cover: 68%; 10th clearest
Wind: 11 mph; 5th windiest
Solar energy: 1.75 kWh/m²
Travel score: 0.0; out of 10

Duluth is city in Minnesota, United States; county seat of St. Louis County.

Density: 364/km²; people per km²
Founded: 1679

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

← December Duluth year-round climate February →Best places to visit in January

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Temperature in January

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 19°F through the month.

A typical January day in Duluth reaches about 19°F in the afternoon and slips back to 8°F overnight — a 11°F spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 1°F and 33°F. Set against its neighbours, January runs about 7°F cooler than December and about 3°F cooler than February.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°F)	21	21	20	20	20	20	19	19	19	19	19	19	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	19	19	19	19	19
Avg low (°F)	10	10	10	9	9	9	8	8	8	8	8	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	8	8

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	21	10
2	21	10
3	20	10
4	20	9
5	20	9
6	20	9
7	19	8
8	19	8
9	19	8
10	19	8
11	19	8
12	19	7
13	18	7
14	18	7
15	18	7
16	18	7
17	18	7
18	18	7
19	18	7
20	18	7
21	18	7
22	18	7
23	18	7
24	18	7
25	18	7
26	18	7
27	19	7
28	19	7
29	19	7
30	19	8
31	19	8

How January really feels in Duluth

Once humidity and wind are folded in, January averages 0 days that feel above 90°F and 31 that feel at or below 32°F — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 90°F

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 32°F

31 feel bitter (≤ 14°F)

The story in January is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Duluth weather by month

How January compares with the rest of the year at a glance. January is the 12th-warmest and 12th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°F)	Rainfall (inches)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	19° / 8°	1.0	6.3	6.9	8.8	0.0
Feb	22° / 10°	1.1	5.3	5.6	10	0.0
Mar	31° / 20°	1.9	7.3	5.1	11.6	0.0
Apr	41° / 31°	3.3	10.2	4.2	13.3	0.4
May	53° / 42°	3.8	11.1	0.5	14.8	2.9
Jun	65° / 55°	4.1	11.6	0	15.6	5.5
Jul	73° / 64°	3.9	11.7	0	15.3	6.7
Aug	73° / 64°	4.0	10.5	0	14	6.9
Sep	66° / 56°	3.6	10.7	0	12.4	5.9
Oct	52° / 44°	4.1	10.8	0.8	10.6	2.8
Nov	38° / 30°	2.6	8.9	5	9.2	0.1
Dec	26° / 17°	1.8	7.4	7.8	8.4	0.0

Cloud cover in January

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 23% of the time in January.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 11% of January, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 66%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	33	33	34	34	34	34	34	34	35	35	34	35	35	34	34	34	34	34	34	34	33	33	33	33	33	33	33	34	34	34	35
Cloudier (%)	67	67	66	66	66	66	66	66	65	65	66	65	65	66	66	66	66	66	66	66	67	67	67	67	67	67	67	66	66	66	65

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	33	67
2	33	67
3	34	66
4	34	66
5	34	66
6	34	66
7	34	66
8	34	66
9	35	65
10	35	65
11	34	66
12	35	65
13	35	65
14	34	66
15	34	66
16	34	66
17	34	66
18	34	66
19	34	66
20	34	66
21	33	67
22	33	67
23	33	67
24	33	67
25	33	67
26	33	67
27	33	67
28	34	66
29	34	66
30	34	66
31	35	65

Chance of precipitation in January

Any precipitationSnow

Duluth gets around 1.0 in of rain and snow over 6.3 wet days in January, the driest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 21% and peaks near 22% on the wettest days, and about 7 days bring snow.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	20	20	20	20	20	20	21	21	21	21	21	22	22	22	22	22	22	22	22	22	21	21	21	20	20	19	19	19	18	18	18
Snow chance (%)	23	23	22	22	22	22	22	22	22	23	23	23	23	23	24	24	24	24	24	24	23	23	23	23	22	22	22	21	21	21	20

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	20	23
2	20	23
3	20	22
4	20	22
5	20	22
6	20	22
7	21	22
8	21	22
9	21	22
10	21	23
11	21	23
12	22	23
13	22	23
14	22	23
15	22	24
16	22	24
17	22	24
18	22	24
19	22	24
20	22	24
21	21	23
22	21	23
23	21	23
24	20	23
25	20	22
26	19	22
27	19	22
28	19	21
29	18	21
30	18	21
31	18	20

Humidity in January

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of January feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, January lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Wind in January

Winds average 11 mph in January.

Across January, daily wind ranges from about 10 mph on the calmest days to 11 mph at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (mph)	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10
Feels	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze

	Wind speed (mph)	Feels
1	11	light breeze
2	11	light breeze
3	11	light breeze
4	11	light breeze
5	11	light breeze
6	11	light breeze
7	11	light breeze
8	11	light breeze
9	11	light breeze
10	11	light breeze
11	11	light breeze
12	11	light breeze
13	11	light breeze
14	11	light breeze
15	11	light breeze
16	11	light breeze
17	11	light breeze
18	11	light breeze
19	10	light breeze
20	10	light breeze
21	10	light breeze
22	10	light breeze
23	10	light breeze
24	10	light breeze
25	10	light breeze
26	10	light breeze
27	10	light breeze
28	10	light breeze
29	10	light breeze
30	10	light breeze
31	10	light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in January

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 24 min at the start of January to 9 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 54 minutes over January. Sunrise moves from 8:00 AM to 7:43 AM, and sunset from 4:24 PM to 5:00 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	8.4	8.4	8.4	8.4	8.5	8.5	8.5	8.5	8.5	8.6	8.6	8.6	8.6	8.7	8.7	8.7	8.8	8.8	8.8	8.9	8.9	8.9	9.0	9.0	9.0	9.1	9.1	9.2	9.2	9.2	9.3
Sunrise (AM)	8:00	8:00	8:00	8:00	7:59	7:59	7:59	7:59	7:59	7:58	7:58	7:58	7:57	7:57	7:56	7:56	7:55	7:55	7:54	7:53	7:53	7:52	7:51	7:50	7:49	7:48	7:47	7:46	7:45	7:44	7:43
Sunset (PM)	4:24	4:24	4:25	4:26	4:27	4:28	4:29	4:30	4:31	4:32	4:34	4:35	4:36	4:37	4:38	4:40	4:41	4:42	4:43	4:45	4:46	4:48	4:49	4:50	4:52	4:53	4:55	4:56	4:57	4:59	5:00

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	8.4	8:00	4:24
2	8.4	8:00	4:24
3	8.4	8:00	4:25
4	8.4	8:00	4:26
5	8.5	7:59	4:27
6	8.5	7:59	4:28
7	8.5	7:59	4:29
8	8.5	7:59	4:30
9	8.5	7:59	4:31
10	8.6	7:58	4:32
11	8.6	7:58	4:34
12	8.6	7:58	4:35
13	8.6	7:57	4:36
14	8.7	7:57	4:37
15	8.7	7:56	4:38
16	8.7	7:56	4:40
17	8.8	7:55	4:41
18	8.8	7:55	4:42
19	8.8	7:54	4:43
20	8.9	7:53	4:45
21	8.9	7:53	4:46
22	8.9	7:52	4:48
23	9.0	7:51	4:49
24	9.0	7:50	4:50
25	9.0	7:49	4:52
26	9.1	7:48	4:53
27	9.1	7:47	4:55
28	9.2	7:46	4:56
29	9.2	7:45	4:57
30	9.2	7:44	4:59
31	9.3	7:43	5:00

Solar energy in January

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in January, about 1.75 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.21 kWh/m² to a high of 6.06 kWh/m² in July across the year — January's 1.75 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	1.4	1.4	1.4	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.7	1.7	1.7	1.8	1.8	1.8	1.8	1.9	1.9	1.9	1.9	2.0	2.0	2.1	2.1	2.1	2.2	2.2
Level	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Dim	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	1.4	Dim
2	1.4	Dim
3	1.4	Dim
4	1.5	Dim
5	1.5	Dim
6	1.5	Dim
7	1.5	Dim
8	1.5	Dim
9	1.6	Dim
10	1.6	Dim
11	1.6	Dim
12	1.6	Dim
13	1.6	Dim
14	1.7	Dim
15	1.7	Dim
16	1.7	Dim
17	1.8	Dim
18	1.8	Dim
19	1.8	Dim
20	1.8	Dim
21	1.9	Dim
22	1.9	Dim
23	1.9	Dim
24	1.9	Dim
25	2.0	Dim
26	2.0	Moderate
27	2.1	Moderate
28	2.1	Moderate
29	2.1	Moderate
30	2.2	Moderate
31	2.2	Moderate

Planning a trip in January

Is January a good time to visit Duluth?

Our two travel scores rate January for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

0.0

Sightseeing

9th-best month of the year

0.0

Beach & pool

7th-best month of the year

January is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Duluth.

What to pack for Duluth in January

From January's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In January, Duluth sees daytime highs around 19°F and nights near 8°F. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. About 6 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coat

Sea temperature near Duluth in January

The nearest coast averages about 36°F in January — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 12 mi away) is warmest in August at about 62°F and coldest in February near 34°F.

The water stays below 68°F all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Sea temperature (°F)	36	34	34	36	38	44	55	62	58	50	43	38
Comfort	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Cool	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing

	Sea temperature (°F)	Comfort
Jan	36	Bracing
Feb	34	Bracing
Mar	34	Bracing
Apr	36	Bracing
May	38	Bracing
Jun	44	Bracing
Jul	55	Bracing
Aug	62	Cool
Sep	58	Bracing
Oct	50	Bracing
Nov	43	Bracing
Dec	38	Bracing

UV index in Duluth in January

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in January peaks around 1. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Duluth peaks around June 17 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 11 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	1	2	3	5	6	8	7	7	5	3	2	1
Level	Low	Low	Moderate	Moderate	High	Very high	High	High	High	Moderate	Low	Low

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	1	Low
Feb	2	Low
Mar	3	Moderate
Apr	5	Moderate
May	6	High
Jun	8	Very high
Jul	7	High
Aug	7	High
Sep	5	High
Oct	3	Moderate
Nov	2	Low
Dec	1	Low

Location & terrain

Where is Duluth?

Duluth sits at 46.8°N, 92.1°W, 702 ft above sea level, in United States. The nearest listed city is Superior, 4.3 mi away.

Topography around Duluth

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 2, 10 and 50 miles of Duluth.

Within 2 miles, the terrain around Duluth has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 778 ft around an average of 856 ft above sea level; within 10 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 938 ft; within 50 miles, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,401 ft.

The land around Duluth is covered by trees (33%), water (30%) and artificial surfaces (28%) within 2 miles, trees (51%) and water (31%) within 10 miles, and trees (76%) within 50 miles.

2 miles

778 ft

trees 33%

10 miles

938 ft

trees 51%

50 miles

1,401 ft

trees 76%

treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater

← December Duluth year-round climate February →Best places to visit in January

January weather nearby: Superior 4.3 mi · Hibbing 59 mi · Forest Lake 112 mi · Ham Lake 119 mi · Andover 121 mi · Lino Lakes 122 mi · Ramsey 124 mi · Elk River 124 mi

United States travel facts

Power plugs: Type A / B; 120 V · 60 Hz
Prices: ≈ 100% of US; price level, 2025
GDP per capita: $90,027; 2025
Happiness: 6.8 / 10; World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water: 98%; of population, 2024
Homicide rate: 5.8; per 100k, 2023
Road deaths: 12.7; per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group: High; World Bank
Religion

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Duluth (46.7833°, -92.1066°, elevation 702 ft), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	21	10
2	21	10
3	20	10
4	20	9
5	20	9
6	20	9
7	19	8
8	19	8
9	19	8
10	19	8
11	19	8
12	19	7
13	18	7
14	18	7
15	18	7
16	18	7
17	18	7
18	18	7
19	18	7
20	18	7
21	18	7
22	18	7
23	18	7
24	18	7
25	18	7
26	18	7
27	19	7
28	19	7
29	19	7
30	19	8
31	19	8

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	33	67
2	33	67
3	34	66
4	34	66
5	34	66
6	34	66
7	34	66
8	34	66
9	35	65
10	35	65
11	34	66
12	35	65
13	35	65
14	34	66
15	34	66
16	34	66
17	34	66
18	34	66
19	34	66
20	34	66
21	33	67
22	33	67
23	33	67
24	33	67
25	33	67
26	33	67
27	33	67
28	34	66
29	34	66
30	34	66
31	35	65

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	20	23
2	20	23
3	20	22
4	20	22
5	20	22
6	20	22
7	21	22
8	21	22
9	21	22
10	21	23
11	21	23
12	22	23
13	22	23
14	22	23
15	22	24
16	22	24
17	22	24
18	22	24
19	22	24
20	22	24
21	21	23
22	21	23
23	21	23
24	20	23
25	20	22
26	19	22
27	19	22
28	19	21
29	18	21
30	18	21
31	18	20

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	21	10
2	21	10
3	20	10
4	20	9
5	20	9
6	20	9
7	19	8
8	19	8
9	19	8
10	19	8
11	19	8
12	19	7
13	18	7
14	18	7
15	18	7
16	18	7
17	18	7
18	18	7
19	18	7
20	18	7
21	18	7
22	18	7
23	18	7
24	18	7
25	18	7
26	18	7
27	19	7
28	19	7
29	19	7
30	19	8
31	19	8

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	33	67
2	33	67
3	34	66
4	34	66
5	34	66
6	34	66
7	34	66
8	34	66
9	35	65
10	35	65
11	34	66
12	35	65
13	35	65
14	34	66
15	34	66
16	34	66
17	34	66
18	34	66
19	34	66
20	34	66
21	33	67
22	33	67
23	33	67
24	33	67
25	33	67
26	33	67
27	33	67
28	34	66
29	34	66
30	34	66
31	35	65

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	20	23
2	20	23
3	20	22
4	20	22
5	20	22
6	20	22
7	21	22
8	21	22
9	21	22
10	21	23
11	21	23
12	22	23
13	22	23
14	22	23
15	22	24
16	22	24
17	22	24
18	22	24
19	22	24
20	22	24
21	21	23
22	21	23
23	21	23
24	20	23
25	20	22
26	19	22
27	19	22
28	19	21
29	18	21
30	18	21
31	18	20

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°F)	Avg low (°F)
1	21	10
2	21	10
3	20	10
4	20	9
5	20	9
6	20	9
7	19	8
8	19	8
9	19	8
10	19	8
11	19	8
12	19	7
13	18	7
14	18	7
15	18	7
16	18	7
17	18	7
18	18	7
19	18	7
20	18	7
21	18	7
22	18	7
23	18	7
24	18	7
25	18	7
26	18	7
27	19	7
28	19	7
29	19	7
30	19	8
31	19	8

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	33	67
2	33	67
3	34	66
4	34	66
5	34	66
6	34	66
7	34	66
8	34	66
9	35	65
10	35	65
11	34	66
12	35	65
13	35	65
14	34	66
15	34	66
16	34	66
17	34	66
18	34	66
19	34	66
20	34	66
21	33	67
22	33	67
23	33	67
24	33	67
25	33	67
26	33	67
27	33	67
28	34	66
29	34	66
30	34	66
31	35	65

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	20	23
2	20	23
3	20	22
4	20	22
5	20	22
6	20	22
7	21	22
8	21	22
9	21	22
10	21	23
11	21	23
12	22	23
13	22	23
14	22	23
15	22	24
16	22	24
17	22	24
18	22	24
19	22	24
20	22	24
21	21	23
22	21	23
23	21	23
24	20	23
25	20	22
26	19	22
27	19	22
28	19	21
29	18	21
30	18	21
31	18	20

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100